 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: CuriousClarinet
Date: 2012-05-07 00:38
For the past five months I've been learning/performing the 3rd mov. Of Mozart's Concerto. I originally learned the entire movement for Solo & Ensemble competition; I went through the school and region levels, eventually qualifying for state, where I received a superior, (1). A week ago I successfully conned my High School's chamber strings into accompanying me at their concert. (I'm a senior in high school) The following link is the result, but just as a heads up, the quality isn't great. My dad recorded it on his little point-and-shoot camera, so I'm not really looking for comments in that area. I also realize that the orchestra does have some intonation (among other) issues, we had a grand total of one practice together, so considering the fact they're sight reading, they did pretty well. And the tempo drags, that's a combination of me attempting to find the orchestra, and the orchestra not following the director. I'm basically looking for critiques on my playing, stuff relating to the solo, but in particular things I could do to improve in general. Be nice, but also please be honest. =) Thanks for taking the time to listen. Oh, and there is a cut in the middle, because the orchestra was having a hard time playing that part. And a little bit is also missing off the end of the audio.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmycjmqzk0I
Post Edited (2012-05-07 00:43)
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2012-05-07 01:14
Actually some really lovely playing there !!!!! Congratulations !!!
Sound is very solid and the rhythm is good when things go well.
So, rhythm is determined by the length of each sound we produce. Some of your phrase ending notes are too short. This and the fact that some of the mismatches happened when you started on a wrong note. So you are sorta note dependent for the full phrase (at one point that went slightly awry, had you left off the pick up note, you would have been spot on). Think of the bigger chunks as entities that need to have symmetry and you'll be much better served (though you are very close as it is).
And as a minor note, your staccatos could be a little less pointed (smooth out the tonguing a bit).
All in all ................ BRAVO !!!!!
...................Paul Aviles
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2012-05-07 02:54
Nice comments by Paul.
I'm not sure if it's you or the conductor, but the tempo is all over the place.
I get the feeling that you are too worried about making a mistake. Heck, we all worry about that. The results are just playing notes without feeling. Music must feel like something to you when playing. Maybe close your eyes and listen to a recording from great players. Marcellus, Sabine Meyer, Dave Shifirin, are just a few of my favorites. The list is long regaeding my favorites. They all have this dream velvety sound. For the second movement I think of graceful dancers. Once you achieve a goal of feeling the piece. the music should explode with emotion and the audience will be standing up at the end of the piece.
Work on your scales. They were a bit sloppy at times, maybe due to nerves. I would suggest playing scales at the beginning of practice. You should work on scales about 1/3 of your practice time, then etudes, followed by a piece you are working on, such as the Mozart.
I didn't like the reed setup, although I find your sound quite pleasing knowing that you are in high school, the reed sounded too hard. You may wish to get advice about mouthpieces and reeds. Feel free in emailing me for an in depth evaluation.
Keep up the great work and please send us more! I enjoyed hearing you play. I hope you are considering attending college as a music major or a music minor.
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Author: johng ★2017
Date: 2012-05-07 20:49
While listening to your recording, I waivered from thinking how you bring a pleasant sparkle to the piece to wondering if this is a piece of music that should be trifled with by having a high school orchestra play with one rehearsal. There is more to Mozart's concerto than can be dealt with in a life time much less in a few minutes. There just is too much the soloist and the orchestra have to do together to make the piece work. Having said that, I think I will turn to the side of praising you for your pleasant sparkle. Thanks for sharing.
John Gibson, Founder of JB Linear Music, www.music4woodwinds.com
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Author: CuriousClarinet
Date: 2012-05-07 21:49
Thanks for all the suggestions.
Johng, I totally agree with you. I originally prepared the solo with the intention of playing it with a piano accompianment. The orchestra was, unfortunatly, a last minute idea. The solo part alone is no where near perfect, I could point out several obvious mistakes throughout, let alone the concerto as a whole. My school's orchestra was in the middle of preparing for state string ensemble competition, along with a trip to California. Actually, they started their long bus ride to Anaheim 2 hours after the Mozart performance. Was it the most brilliant rendition of Mozart ever performed by a high school group? No. Is it a slight embarrasment to Mozart? Probably. But it was fun. It gave me a rare opportunity to play my A clarinet, and seeing as several young musicians learned from it, I'm sure Mozart would approve.
And I'm happy you enjoyed my "pleasant sparkle". =)
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